TRAI, RBI launch pilot project to digitally verify consumer consent

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has launched a pilot initiative to digitally verify consumer consent for commercial calls and messages. The project is aimed to reduce unsolicited commercial communications and enhance consumer safety. This programme, initiated in collaboration with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), involves selected banks and telecom service providers (TSPs) and marks the beginning of a nationwide rollout of a secure digital consent framework.

Under the Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations (TCCCPR), 2018, organisations may still contact customers for commercial purposes, even if they are registered under the Do Not Disturb (DND) service, provided explicit consent has been obtained. However, TRAI has received an increasing number of spam complaints against such organisations, many of which claim to have obtained consumer consent through unverifiable or offline means. In numerous instances, customers report that their mobile numbers were acquired through deceptive practices or unauthorised data sharing.

TRAI has recently introduced several progressive regulatory measures to combat such issues. These include enabling customers to lodge complaints against unregistered telemarketers (UTMs), even if they are not registered under DND, and initiating the disconnection of telecom resources being misused for spamming. On Monday, 16 June 2025, the Ministry of Communications stated that “verifying consent for commercial communication based on offline consumer authorisation remains a significant challenge.”

To address this, TRAI has mandated that businesses obtain and record consumer consent digitally via a secure, interoperable Digital Consent Registry managed by TSPs. This mechanism will enable real-time verification of consent prior to initiating any commercial communication. However, TRAI emphasises that the onboarding of businesses sending commercial messages is essential for the system’s effectiveness.

Given the significant risk to consumers posed by financial fraud, TRAI instructed all TSPs to commence a Regulatory Sandbox Pilot, in partnership with the RBI and a few selected institutions, on 13 June 2025. The pilot will assess the technological, operational, and regulatory viability of the Consent Registration Function (CRF), with plans to expand it to other sectors in future. TRAI reiterated its commitment to safeguarding consumer interests and enhancing trust in legitimate commercial communications.